one of my most favorite parts of a court of silver flames is also one the worst parts imo. the scene where nesta is having a nightmare and cassian senses this through their bond (mate behavior right there) and fights azriel to let him go to her. it’s such an intense scene and so beautiful for nessian, but the reason it’s a favorite is actually because of rhys in that moment. having gone into her head to calm her down so her powers wouldn’t destroy the house/velaris. how he witnessed her pain and trauma from the cauldron was just so good.
“I saw it,” Rhys whispered. “Felt it. Everything that happened within the Cauldron. Saw her take its power with her teeth and claws and rage. And I saw … felt … what it took from her.” Rhys rubbed his face, and slowly straightened. He met Cassian’s stare unflinchingly, his eyes full of remorse and agony. “Her trauma is …” Rhys’s throat bobbed. “I know,” Cassian whispered. “I guessed,” Rhys breathed, “but it was different to feel it.”
i love this moment. at this point everyone else only seems to know a very small bit of nesta’s trauma, but to feel the pain nesta endured in the cauldron through someone who up to this point treated her pain as her just being irrationally angry was such a smart play by SJM. at this part in the series rhys has had very little patience with nesta (and sometimes rightfully so), but it was this moment that made him open his eyes to see how wounded she actually is.
now the reason i think this is also one of the worst scenes is because we got no payoff to this moment. i was hoping that before nesta hit rock bottom and told feyre about the baby/rhys threatened to kill her we would have had a callback to rhys bearing witness to her nightmare. he had suffered his own nightmares after UtM and feyre was there to calm him down and soothe him awake. he knows what it’s like to be trapped in a never ending moment of sheer terror, but it’s never brought up again. it was overshadowed by all the baby drama.
i am ok with rhys not offering comfort or kindness to nesta because knowing her she would have said something rude to push him away/out of embarrassment. i was, however, hoping that rhys and cassian would discuss her nightmares and offer words of wisdom from someone who also suffered traumatizing dreams. an acknowledgement that even if he didn’t particularly like nesta he felt her pain and understands what she’s going through. but we got none of this. and i’m bitter lol.